Faith's Champion
by maychelle
Summary: What if Darla wasn’t the only one pregnant with Angel’s child? What if the Powers That Be had even more plans for the champion – the vampire with a soul? What if these plans included a certain dark Slayer?
1. Prologue

General gist: What if Darla wasn't the only one pregnant with Angel's child? What if the Powers That Be had even more plans for the champion – the vampire with a soul?

Author's Note: This is my first attempt at putting fan fiction on-line for others to see. Hope you all enjoy it and please..... reviews!! They are very welcome.

Also, my story doesn't exactly follow the story time line of the original Angel and Buffy series. There will be mention of other character pairings (wink wink) and more fun stuff to come.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the world of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. All of these characters belong to the one and only, Joss Whedon.

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**Prologue**

Up in the heavens, up high where everything was a white swirling mass of clouds and mist, The Powers That Be were watching as one of their champions – the vampire with a soul, made love to his former sire without going through any of the throes of passion. Sure he had fun and all but he didn't realize that he hadn't achieved true happiness.

For such an old vampire (in the mortal standards), Angel was a bit dense and naïve sometimes. He might not be so in many areas but _this_ was definitely one of them, him having not loved anyone truly for so long now. He was totally clueless in the affairs of the heart, having only loved two women truly in all his undead life, Darla first, then Buffy. He didn't realize that he wasn't in love with the future vampire Darla, whose time unfortunately was coming to a premature and final end in the next few months.

Both of the pawns had played their part well, now it was time for The Powers That Be to do their part. They had two paths to choose from, one was to let the vampire champion have one powerful child with the other vampire and then let Destiny run it's course and have the son come back to kill the father, or at least try to. Possibly even sleep with his father's future flame and have another more powerful child, an Elder reborn. That would definitely cause a small amount (by their standards) of chaos in this leg of the universe. Possibly even rival the time when that one elder demon had managed to enter the realm of Earth and their champion then, some puny Slayer, had diverted the disaster.

But then if they did that only one of them would have fun, in fact all the fun. No, they would take the other path, the one that promised even more turmoil, chaos and definitely fun for them. Firstly, they could start by freeing another future champion, the Dark Slayer. They had neglected her for too long, being more intent on her older counterpart, Buffy. Ah, what chaos would they make. After all, both girls had some issues with each other, why not create more?

The older Slayer resented the younger one for coming and disturbing the peace and order of her tiny little world in Sunnydale. There was also the issue of her (as in the younger Slayer) of turning dark and killing a man and nearly killing the Slayer and her friends. In the future they could anticipate the older girl resenting the younger one for the chance given to her by The Powers That Be to have somethings of Angel that she would never have. Oho, this would be one hell of a fire show. The Powers That Be couldn't wait for this.

And onto the Dark Slayer. She had a shadowy past, one that not too many people knew about. Oh no, this Slayer liked to keep her cards near herself at all times, giving out this supposedly bad ass attitude that no one could penetrate. Only one person had ever gotten near enough to chink the armour around Faith's heart, and that was Angel himself, though he didn't know it. This Slayer would be fun too, after all hell hath no fury like a woman scorned or a mother riled.

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**Meanwhile, somewhere else in California.........**

The door of the California state penitentiary swung open on its creaky hinges, admitting a young woman into the streets outside. The young woman squinted slightly at the amount of sunlight hitting her eyes, before straightening up and slowly but confidently walking away from the prison building. She cast a slightly wistful but mostly thankful glance at the building. It had been her saviour for all these months, teaching her how to deal with life in general and letting her rebuild her connection to the world slowly, one bit at a time.

_Not your only saviour._ The Slayer's conscience reminded her.

Faith couldn't believe it when they said that she was free to go. She thought that they were joking and probably had extended her stay in the slammer. She was really surprised when her letter of pardon arrived for her along with the prison warden. She couldn't help but thank all her lucky stars and The Powers That Be for giving her a reprieve. Someone higher up must really like her, or Fate had another diabolically nasty plan in store for her. Any way she looked at it, she wouldn't lose a thing. She was free after all.

She was released with a strict warning never to commit the crime again and never to darken their doorstep another time. Faith had whooped with joy when she got far enough from the slammer. She was finally free, free to do whatever she wanted in the world, possibly even forget about the Slayer thing. It was a long shot but hey everything is worth a try. But first things first, she had to find Angel and tell him the good news.

Angel. The name itself brought back fond memories and suppressed feelings to the Dark Slayer. She had heard about him when she had first arrived in Sunnydale to look for the older existing Slayer for help. She had been invited, wearily into the home of the Slayer, Buffy Summers, where she proceeded to meet the elusive vampire himself. Her Slayer instincts had reacted, prompting her to attack him. He had fought back in kind, just like what a real vampire would do in his situation. Buffy had of course stopped her from putting a stake through her ex-boyfriend's undead heart, seeing as she still had some feelings for him.

The time of her fight with Angel may have been brief, but it was enough for the younger Slayer to notice how the vampire's muscles had bunched and flexed in battle, how his scent had grown stronger, and how he had unwittingly shown her how much he enjoyed the fight, albeit briefly, before a look of remorse quickly overshadowed that fact. They were both killers; him because he needed to survive; her because she needed to avenge the death of her first Watcher, who had consequently become like a mother figure to her. He shouldn't have to feel remorse for enjoying the fight, after all, the urge to fight was in their blood.

For the few times that she met, Faith had gotten to know the broody vampire more. He became her first friend after her Watcher had died and he had listened to her when she wanted to rant and whine about something. They had grown closer as a result, a little fact that Buffy had resented her for. However, there was nothing that she should have resented her for. She held the key to Angel's heart, one thing that Faith had sub-consciously yearned for. She didn't know then, but during her time in prison, she had come to realise that she had fallen for Angel. And she had fallen hard.

Of the few times that Angel came to visit her, she treasured every moment that she had with him. She became his secret confidante, his rock to turn to when he had something on his mind, a sister-friend-secret keeper of sorts. She yearned for more, but out of respect to him mourning over his loss of Buffy's love, she kept her feelings to herself. She literally counted the days and hours _and_ minutes to his arrival, having the infallible Slayer internal body clock to rely on.

But these last few months, his visits had become more infrequent, getting lesser and lesser each time. The time he spent together with her also became shorter, and every time he came, he seemed preoccupied. His mind was elsewhere while his body was with her and oftentimes she had to call his name several times before he even acknowledged her presence. She kept quiet about his moodiness, feeling that it was not her place to pry, but that he would tell her eventually.

It was during these times that she took the chance to study him well. She never dared to do so when he was alert and lucid, he would definitely wonder what she was doing. She memorised his features, so that even in her dreams she would remember his face. She by-hearted all his mannerisms, all his little quirks, like how he ran his fingers through his hair when he was frustrated, or how he grinned like a kid on Christmas when he was extremely pleased with himself. She had to admit though that she was becoming like Buffy, in the sense that she almost obsessed over him, although she could safely say that she didn't pine after him like some love-sick cow. Her sense of self preservation didn't allow her to be so liberal with her feelings. Otherwise she would be dead by now, dead of heartache.

Donning the clothes she wore on the day of her admittance to prison, Faith walked to the end of the road leading to the California State Penitentiary and took a left turn into an unused route. After making sure that there was no one around to see her, she loosened up her long unused muscles and did a few stretches before turning and starting to jog in the direction of Los Angeles. She had to go to the Hyperion to find Angel and tell him the good news. Jog was the incorrect term though, slow run would be a more appropriate description, at a pace that any normal human would find find very demanding.

She fervently hoped that Angel would be there when she arrived, 'cause she had a lot of things that she would like to discuss with him.

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Author's Note: So, how did it go? Hoped you all liked my twist to the story. Please review and give me any suggestions you think would be relevant to the story.


	2. Chapter One: Rainy Realizations

Chapter One – Rainy Realization

It was raining down in L.A. Everyone felt subdued by the gloomy weather, with the occasional flashes of lightning adding to the oppression. The rain suited Angel just fine. It added to his broody mood, making him look even more dangerous and remote.

He still couldn't believe what he had done a couple of months ago. He had met Darla, resurrected by Wolfram and Hart as a mortal woman then. He had gotten to know her again, as a human this time around, and then he couldn't help but fall for the woman again. He even made the gravest mistake of bedding his former sire.

It had been glorious, getting to know his sire in a way many of his kind didn't have a chance to – when their sire was human. Most either were long dead or still one of the undead. Though technically that meant that you were still dead.

When he had found out about her involvement with Wolfram and Hart, Angel had been devastated. He had hoped that this time around Darla was redeemable. He of course didn't know that his sire had steadily been falling for him in her human guise. Then they had found out about Darla's terminal condition from Lindsey and Holland, a by-product of her resurrection.

Darla had come to the decision to be with Angel, come what may. However, an irresistible offer by the law firm had caught her attention. She wouldn't need to die and she would have Angel forever. After carefully planning her one night with Angel as a mortal and nearly succeeding in her plans to have him turn her (all the idea of Wolfram and Heart), Angel left, leaving his heart with her, something the law firm had been trying to achieve all along.

Angel didn't know what to do. On one hand he had the woman he had once loved and might still be in love with. On the other he had his friends to think about after their very real break-up all those weeks ago over her. In the end he had chosen to stand by his friends.

So lost in his internal musings, Angel didn't hear the knocking on his door. A crash of lightning masked the sound of his door opening, revealing a young woman in a black tank top and jeans. She walked into the room silently, intent on surprising the vampire within. She needn't have done so; he wouldn't have noticed even if a Fyarl demon came waltzing in wearing a two-piece bikini set.

"Hey Angel, I heard that you've been getting the broody look down pat again. I know that you have an image to keep up, being the Big Bad and all, but really, enough is enough. What's bugging you?"

Angel turned to look at the woman in surprise. Her long dark hair framed her heart shaped face in a dark halo, her dark eyes seeming like molten chocolate. With her small build and understated allure, she seemed like some dark angel, knocking at his door to deal out retribution for all his sins of past. She had nearly done so, once, but it had ended well.

"Faith," he said, warmth creeping unnoticed into his voice. He didn't realise how his spirits lifted a bit whenever she was there, especially after not seeing her for a few weeks.

"Yup. it's lil' old me, here in the flesh. Again." She said, referring to the time when she had run to L.A. to seek his guidance and was mislead into killing him. Or trying to. "How have you been, Angel?" she asked, trying to lighten his mood. Apparently, it wasn't the right thing to say.

Angel's face that had lit up when she came into his room immediately clouded up again. He had returned to his broody mood again. Faith sighed, her facial features softening in the light. There was definitely a lot on his mind, so much so that he didn't even give her the customary one-armed hug reserved for her alone.

"What's going on, Angel? I couldn't get anything out of Cordy when I saw her just now. She was quite tight-lipped, only said that you had gone broody again and locked yourself in your room." Faith asked, a frown appearing between her brows. That wasn't all that the former Queen bee of Sunnydale had said, but that was conversation not meant for Angel's ears. She didn't want to cause the team to break up again over something as trivial as her.

Angel just sighed, prompting Faith to lead him to the bed and take a seat. She patted the space beside her, indicating that she wanted him to sit. Angel reluctantly complied, nothing else he could do then.

"Tell me what's wrong." Faith coaxed. Angel had done this for her several times before; it was time she returned the favour. Even if she couldn't do anything, at least he would get it off his chest. A burden shared was a burden halved, right?

"It's nothing really, just have some things on my mind," the vampire said, purposely not saying a thing about his internal struggles and turmoil. He didn't need anyone else to know what was going on in his life right now; besides they wouldn't understand. He had tried to unload it all on Cordy before, that hadn't turned out too well. She had ended up shouting at him for forsaking his friends and tuning his back on his job.

Angel snorted. _Job._ Yeah, his job, or the more correct term to it was his atonement to human kind for all the pain and suffering he had caused during his earlier years as he ran around Europe with the Master, Darla, Drusilla his childe and William his grandchilde of sorts. At that time they had been part of the Order of Aurelius, an order that was said to have been descended from Dracula himself. Angelus, the darker side of him, had great fun causing all the terror and pain to the general populace of Europe, in fact he reveled in the destruction caused in his wake.

Of course, all of that had been put to an end by the gypsies curse. He had gained a conscience, and the entire troop had dropped him like a sack of hot potatoes. Darla had been especially cruel, calling him weak like William. Angelus had not liked that, he resented his pansy grandchilde even more after that. Now he heard that William, no Spike, was in Sunnydale, chumming up with Buffy.

Well, he couldn't do a thing about _that_ issue. Buffy was a big girl, she knew how to handle herself. Besides, who was he to dictate how Buffy led her life? Hadn't he himself hurt her and nearly kill her when he took her innocence away? He was a monster, one who didn't deserve to live after all the things that he had done to mankind. If he didn't have to atone for his sins and if he was one of weak resolve and without purpose in life, he would have greeted the dawn a long time ago.

"Why are you here?" Angel asked, suddenly realizing who exactly was in the room with him. "How did you get out of prison? When did you get out? If you escaped from the law then we are all in trouble." Angel said, blasting off immediately in his concern for Faith's safety.

"Calm down, Angel." _My big bad vampire_, she added silently. "I didn't escape from prison, I was released just two days ago. It took me two days to get to L.A on foot, I got lost once and ended up halfway out of the state before I asked for directions and got it right". She didn't say though that she had been nearly mauled by the person who gave her directions, turns out he was a vampire in disguise. Her Slayer senses hadn't been used for so long that she had gotten rusty, so rusty that she couldn't even distinguish man from vampire. She'd have to rectify that soon, or else she was one dead Slayer.

She had gotten to L.A without any further mishap, after she had dusted the misleading vamp first. It had been a cloudy day to begin with and then it had started to rain around mid-morning, effectively sending people diving for cover, which in turn made her journey to the Hyperion much easier and there was a lesser chance of people recognizing her. Although what she did back in Sunnydale wouldn't garner that much attention here in such a big city, she still had this irrational fear of people knowing what she had done. She was rightly ashamed of her actions, and she wished to repent.

"So, you're perfecting the ' I'm-a-bad-ass-vampire-who-doesn't-give-a-damn-what-you-think-so-leave-me-the-hell-alone " look? Sorry to have to break your bubble, but it doesn't exactly work that well, _especially_ for someone like you. I've tried it, and I can safely vouch for the fact that it just don't work. Coming from a person who has been through the slammer, you've gotta believe me on this." she added.

"Faith, I didn't mean to remind you about ..." Angel started to say but he was cut off by a wave from Faith's hand.

"It's okay, I don't mind, so why should you get so heated up about it?" she said airily, secretly pleased that the effect that she had been going for had worked, and he had been slowly coming out of his funk. However, he could just as easily slip back in, so she needed to do something to distract him from his moody thoughts. Suddenly, inspiration hit.

"Get up." she ordered, standing from his bed rapidly, ignoring the urge to sit back down and sniff the pillows. Angel looked at her quizzically, not understanding her sudden change in mood. She had been teasing at first, but now she was very serious, as if there was something important that she wanted him to do.

Reluctantly, Angel stood up. Faith immediately started dragging him in the direction of the stairs, intent on going somewhere.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked, puzzled as to what was going on in that pretty little head of hers.

"Is there any place with a big open space in this building?" Faith asked him instead, ignoring his question for the time being. She turned to look at him, not once faltering in her stride, head cocked to a side, waiting for an answer.

"Yeah, there's the old ballroom up on the fourth floor..." Angel said, before he dragged upwards to the ballroom.

It took them about five minutes to reach the cavernous ballroom. Although it was old and had cobwebs hanging from parts of the ceiling, it was still in relatively good shape.

Faith surveyed the room with an air of satisfaction. This room was perfect for what she had in mind. Wide open spaces, not too much clutter on the floor, drapes over the windows to block out any sunlight that might accidentally spill into the room; simply put, absolute perfection.

She turned to look at Angel and slowly backed away several steps. He made to follow her, an unasked question on his lips, but Faith stopped him with a raised hand. He paused, unsure what she had in mind as she backed up some more. After she was satisfied with the distance between them, she opened her mouth to utter the most unthinkable words Angel had ever heard.

"Hit me." she said.

His face must have registered the shock he was feeling at that moment, because she repeated her previous statement.

"Hit me." she intoned again. "Or are you too afraid of loosing to me, a Slayer?" she said in a jeering tone.

"Faith, what are you doing? I absolutely won't fight you." he said, not even riled up a bit by her calling him a coward.

"Come on, I know that you want to fight me. I'm ready, so hit me. Or do you think that you will come up short?" she added even more insults to the mix, hoping against hope that his demon would take the bait.

"No." came his clipped reply. "I don't know what you're aiming at but this has got to stop." Angel said turning to leave before his demon got out of hand. Her words had struck a nerve that he didn't know was there, and his demon was raring for a fight.

Faith huffed in frustration. This man could be so infuriating at times. Well, if you had to get something done, best to do it yourself. Just as he turned to walk away, she took a running leap and crashed into his back, sending him flying to the opposite wall. She quickly jumped off as he turned and sent a fist swinging her way. It connected with a nearby chair, which immediately shattered upon impact.

"Is that all that you have?" Faith taunted as Angel stood back up. "Come on, gimme all that you got." she said, quirking a finger in his direction.

Angel snarled, leaping at her. Partly it was from the anger of his demon; another part was him trying desperately to tamp his demon down. It wasn't working so far as he sent a roundhouse punch to Faith's left ribcage before sweeping his legs under her feet and jabbing her in the back.

Faith leaped away, narrowly avoiding the sweep to her legs or the jab to her back. However, she didn't see the punch that came from her right. It came out of nowhere, crashing into her right side, sending her flying several feet into the air before falling back down to the ground.

"Is that all that you've got, Slayer? I expected more from you, the supposed dark Slayer." the demon in Angel taunted, as he had completely vamped out during the few seconds it took for Faith to be knocked off her feet. "You did come and try to kill me before." he added derisively. "Where did that creature go?"

"It's right here." Faith replied snarkily as she launched herself across the room, knocking her whole body into Angel's.

Angel retaliated by punching Faith in the gut. He wanted to hold back, but his demon demanded that he teach the little upstart Slayer her place. He practically lost control of _him_. There was no stopping him now. He might have been able to before, when his demon wasn't so angry, but now it wanted, no, _demanded_ satisfaction. It would not rest until it was satisfied that the Slayer had learned her lesson, and learned it well. She should never go against her Lord and Master again.

Wait, where did that thought come from? Angel was distracted momentarily, before he banished the odd thoughts from his head and focused on the battle before him. He observed the fight as if he was outside his body, watching as the two combatants circled each other, looking for each others weaknesses. They traded blows occasionally, his connecting more often than not. His demon smiled in approval as the Slayer barely flinched whenever a blow connected with her body. It was as if she was made of stone, where she couldn't feel the sting of the wounds inflicted by him.

Faith watched Angel's face as she circled him. She had been gunning for this reaction all along; this came as no surprise to her. She had wanted to make him forget whatever it was that had made him broody; she had succeeded in that respect. She had wanted to see the old Angel, the one that had fought her ferociously on the day they first met, not the Angel that had been tamed by Buffy. That was not the real him; _this_ was Angel. Strong, ferocious, deadly, beautiful in all his demonic glory. Not that she condoned him becoming Angelus, that was an abomination in and of itself. No, this Angel, the one that was free to fight her without reservations, the one that gave in to his demon side without losing touch with his humanity; that was the real Angel.

This was how she envisioned him to be; the dominant Master vampire whose feet she would willingly lay down at. Momentarily sidetracked by this thought, it was all the incentive that Angel needed. This was the opportunity that he had been waiting for. He pounced on her, and succeeded in pinning her to the ground as they crashed against the wall/floor several feet away. For the fist time that night, Faith whimpered as something deep inside her stirred at the masterful way that Angel was handling her.

The sound only seemed to encourage Angel more. He slid into his human visage effortlessly while still exuding the aura of a Master vamp. He placed a hand around Faith's neck and bent her head slightly backward, revealing the creamy flesh of her skin to him He bent nearer, his cool breath just inches away from her cheeks.

"Yield to me." he commanded, eliciting another whimper form Faith, but no other sound came out of her mouth. He growled, not happy with her lack of vocalization of her defeat.

"Yield to me." he said in a softer voice, yet beneath it was an undercurrent of his demands. He emphasized the point by putting a bit more pressure on Faith's neck. She seemed to crumple beneath his commands, opening her mouth to utter four life altering words.

"I yield to you." she whispered.

Angel smiled, a deep sense of satisfaction bubbling from within him. But something else seemed to be missing, something crucial to his dominion over her.

"Say that you belong to me." he demanded again, tilting her neck to the side a bit and breathing into her ear. " Say that you are mine. Say it!"

"I'm yours." she intoned softly. The demon in Angel roared his approval, and swooped in to seal the deal. Extending his long incisors, Angel pierced into the soft flesh of Faith's neck and took a deep drink.

It was like heaven exploded into his mouth. The blood that flowed over his tongue was unlike anything he had ever tasted before in all his undead life. There was a hint of honey and cinnamon, but the most predominant taste was that of spice. Some unknown spice that reminded him distinctly of Faith. Sweet and tangy with a hint of spicy, just like the owner of the blood. He pulled her closer, smirking as she gave another whimper of surrender. It was heady, almost like how a drug addict would feel should he be high on drugs, and he couldn't seem to get enough of it.

Faith could only lie limp in Angel's arms as he fed on her life's essence. She could feel the slivers of power that were slipping through their connection as he commanded that her entire will surrender to him. He didn't know that her whole heart and soul was his for the taking, his to with whatever he wished. She was his, in almost all sense of the word except through the flesh. That was something she dared not ask for, lest he brush her away and send her heart shattering to the floor. That, and perhaps his heart in return, unattainable goals that seemed miles away from where she was.

Suddenly, the texture of the blood changed. It started to taste thin and lifeless, bringing a whiff of death with it. Angel stopped drinking, eliciting a moan from the woman in his arms. He had to act fast; he was slowly but surely loosing her. His demon roared in anger and defiance; none would take away what was rightfully theirs, not even Death himself. Acting on instinct, Angel unlatched himself from Faith's neck and bit into his own wrist. He let the crimson fluid drip steadily into Faith's mouth, making her colour return slightly, but it was still not enough. She was fading fast.

He tore his shirt open and slashed a cut over his unbeating dead heart. He then placed her mouth over the cut, urging the beautiful brunette to feed. She latched on listlessly, most of the blood spilling down his torso, but enough went into her system to keep her alive. Her colour returned fully, a fact which made his demon crow in triumph and pride. His mate was fighter, a worthy opponent and equal for them.

"Mate?" Angel said quietly, mulling things over in his mind. He realized with a bit of horror and also a huge sense of satisfaction what exactly he had done.

"Shit. I claimed her." he said under his breath. However, he did not regret doing so. Only then did he realize the truth, he had been steadily falling in love with Faith since they had met all those years ago. He smiled then, truly accepting the inevitable reality. He was in love with Faith, and that had been his main cause of agonizing over his tryst with Darla. He had known unconsciously that he was cheating on his mate. However, right now he needed to...

"Oh my God! What is going on here?!" a shrill voice shrieked form the ballroom doorway. Angel turned, grimacing.

Oh shit.

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Author's Note: Okay you guys, I'm leaving you with the first chapter of "Faith's Champion". Hope you guys like it and please review!!! Also thanks to BrownPaperBag51 for the review. Keep reviewing and adding me on your alerts and I will update as soon as I can.

Tata and see you soon!!!


	3. Chapter Two: Making Melodious Music

Chapter Two – Making Melodious Music

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. All of these belong to Joss Whedon and his crew. Thanks for letting me play with them though.

Author's Note: Hi guys, sorry for the late update. Hopefully the next one one will be a lot faster. I am working on my upcoming exams, busy with the studying and all that. So, enough bout me, on with the story.

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Last time in Faith's Champion......

"Oh my God! What is going on here?!" a shrill voice shrieked form the ballroom doorway. Angel turned, grimacing.

Oh shit.

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Cordelia Chase was a woman with a mission. Angel had been in a funk since a couple of months ago. He had fluctuated from being joyous one minute, to broody the next, then to angry after that. It was disconcerting, and worrying to say the least. She and the gang at Angel Inc. had tried everything to bring him out of his rut, but it seemed to have no effect whatsoever. He had come back from one of his frequent "trips" even more distraught and gloomy than usual, not at all like the times he went out to meet this mysterious person.

However, that hadn't been the worst. He had returned to the Hyperion a few weeks ago a totally shattered man. It was as if the life had been sucked out of him (no pun intended). He was pale and sweaty, literally (the former, not the latter, of course), and he looked as if someone had taken away his favourite bag of blood and told him to drink water instead. He looked like he had seen a ghost (like they all hadn't already seen their fair share of weird stuff) and he seemed as if he could vomit at any moment. It was the worst any of them had ever seen him. Even the news of Buffy's "death" had not hit him this badly.

That morning, Cordy had already made a deal with Lorne to swing by Caritas with Angel in tow that evening. Angel could do his thing, then Lorne could get a reading and tell them what was wrong with their erstwhile leader. It wouldn't be any hassle, just a normal night for Angel and co. Yeah, like going to Caritas to lounge around would be normal for them. Not likely, not with the lives they lead. Then, _she_ had arrived.

_**Flashback...**_

Cordelia Chase was nothing if not determined. That was evident from the way she handled the issues in her life, whether it was on the job, saving the lives of innocents, or it was just something as mundane as choosing her outfit for a night on the town with her boss and co-workers. She was busy admiring the curves that the green dress showcased in the mirror and of course, her ritual preening. She wasn't the queen of Sunnydale High for nothing. Although she had lost her posse quite some time ago, she still ruled as the queen bee in the Hyperion. After all, the only other girl in the group, Fred, couldn't hold a candle to her.

"Hmm, maybe I should go with the red. It does bring out the dark red in my hair" she mused to herself. "Or maybe the blue would be better. It does make me look slimmer. Yes, I'll go with the blue." she decided, setting the dress aside and hanging it behind the door. She cast a withering look at the only black dress that she had in her possession.

"Ugh, that old thing has got to go. It is totally not my style." she said in disgust, sweeping the offending dress into a heap and placing it in one of the many spare rooms in the Hyperion. "Ugh, I've gotta wash my hands after touching that vile stuff." she said walking down the corridor towards her room.

Cordy then busied herself with sorting their case records. During the time that they had left, everything had turned upside down and she was still backlogged to about a month of casework. She shook her head in dismay. Left on his own, Angel wouldn't survive. Not the feeding part, he could take care of that just fine, no, she meant the company. It wouldn't survive without her organization skills, or Wesley's suave (gag) communication skills, or Gunn's brawn ad muscles (though Angel had plenty of that too) and ear to the underworld of L.A or even Fred's freaky brain and her affinity with anything magical (well, not _everything_).

This task took her more than half the day, after all, sorting through a list of clients and potential clients plus a whole basket of receipts and lists of things to do wasn't exactly easy. Especially with Angel's tendency to stick things wherever he wanted. She had even found some important receipts in the fridge. Men. Old habits just died hard, and Angel had a couple hundred years to acquire some pretty bad, if not odd habits. She was just thankful that he was a vampire, so he didn't leave stinky clothes lying around the hotel. After all, from what she had learned from Buffy, he had been a slob when he was still human (a live human anyway).

She had been busy digging for some info on the net when she heard the bell of the door go off, indicating that someone had entered through the front door. It definitely wasn't any of the gang, they knew of the side entrance and knew better than to mislead anyone inside that they were a potential customer. This of course came about after Cordy had yelled at them for half an hour straight for getting her hopes up. She definitely didn't need them to give her the extra work of dropping whatever it was she was doing at the moment to "play pretty hostess to whomever it was that walked in through the front door" (her words exactly).

"Hello? Is anyone home?" a voice said from the lobby. Cordy frowned, although she shouldn't have had any inclination to do so. The voice sounded familiar, but where had she heard it before?

"Hello? Angel? Are you there?" the voice said again, this time distinguishable as that of a woman. A woman? Looking for Angel? This was curious.

"Yes? This is Angel Investigations. How can I help..." Cordy said as came out of the office, but her voice died upon seeing the figure in the hotel lobby.

Faith turned as she heard the familiar yet also unfamiliar voice of Cordelia Chase. She wasn't surprised to see the older (albeit slightly) woman in the hotel, she did work for Angel. She just wasn't expecting to see her _this_ soon. She appraised Cordy, taking in her older looks and her longer, straighter hair. She had even changed her looks a bit. Gone were the bright, bubbly colours she usually associated with Cordelia, in it's place were darker, more sombre fabrics. Also, she wasn't sporting some sort of high-tech gear anymore, just normal hand phone in pocket.

"Hello, Cordelia. Fancy meeting you here." Faith said pleasantly. She was trying to start anew, and the first step was by making peace with the gutsy brunt=ette.

"_Faith._" Cordy hissed under her breath. "_What_ are you doing _here_? How did you even _find_ this place?" she whispered hurriedly, not wanting Angel, who was upstairs, to hear what was going on down there.

"Simple. See this? This is called a mouth. It is used for asking directions." Faith said, falling back on the mode of communication she had with the former queen bee. You couldn't keep your cool and your pleasant attitude with someone if they didn't want it. Especially if they were hostile first.

"Ugh, you're _impossible_. I don't _want_ to know _how_ you got here,_ I just want you out of here_!" Cordy hissed, staring venomously at the woman across from her.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily. Besides, Angel said that whenever I came out, there would always be a place here for me." Faith said smugly. "Here, or wherever it was with him." She couldn't help but be smug about it.

"When did Angel ever tell you that? Besides, how would you know what Angel said? It's not like you've met him these past few months."Cordy replied, equally smug, thinking that she had got one over the younger woman.

Faith shook her head derisively. "Cordy, Cordy, you really don't know anything do you?" she smirked. "For the duration that I spent in prison, Angel would come and visit me every two weeks. He would update me on anything and everything that was going on out here."

"What?!" Cordy exclaimed, not believing her ears. This was whom Angel had gone out to see every couple of weeks? How could he?! He was supposed to be with them on this, he was supposed to hate her just like they did! She had tried to kill all of them, including his precious Buffy!

"Besides, what's up with Angel? He seemed so preoccupied lately." Faith added, worry marring her features.

"You know what? That's none of your business. Just go. You're not welcome here. No one wants you here. You are just gonna be a burden to us all." the self appointed queen bee said to the supposed interloper.

Faith struggled to keep her emotions under wraps. What Cordelia said stung. Although she showed an indifferent attitude most of the time, inside, it hurt. A lot. Especially if people repeated the words that her own parents had spewed at her.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" Cordy said, a self satisfied smirk gracing her face. "I'm just stating the truth. So, leave. You don't belong here." she added.

"I believe whatever decision making on who stays and who leaves falls to Angel. So, I'll just be going up to see him and I'll let him decide." Faith said, smiling slightly as Cordy's cheeks turned an interesting shade of red. She knew that she had got her there, as it was Angel who ruled here.

Brushing past the spluttering woman, she went up the grand staircase and headed up, guided by her Slayer sense on the whereabouts of the elusive vampire, leaving the other woman reeling in her wake.

_**End flashback...**_

It had been quite some time since Faith had gone up to look for Angel. She had no doubt that she would find him, after all, every Slayer had that freaky sense where they could sense a vampire like, _miles_ away. But, it was too quiet for Cordy. Something smelt fishy here, but she couldn't put her finger on what it was. Mustering up all her indignation and righteous fury, she marched up the steps and into Angel's room, expecting to see them there. But they weren't.

Cordy couldn't stop the nagging feeling that she was missing something here, but what? She then wandered around the hotel, searching for signs of the two elusive people. _That_ was how she stumbled upon the scene in the ballroom.

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_Shit_. Yeah, that would be the only word to describe what was going on right now. Angel was sure that he looked pretty incriminating with the torn shirt and bloody clothes. Whoever it was in the doorway would probably think that he had regressed to Angelus' ways and had started feeding on innocents again. They wouldn't understand the enormity of what he had just done.

However, whatever they thought could wait. Angel could sense more people coming in their direction after that screech from who was unmistakably Cordy. More people, with two male presences.

Angel growled low in his throat as the two men came nearer. The bond with his mate was weak, so weak in fact that any disturbance from another male could disrupt everything and cause his mate grievous harm. They couldn't allow that. Standing up from his crouch near the floor at the opposite end of the ballroom, Angel strode forward, unheeding of all the cries and questions that his friends were throwing his way. He turned Faith's face to his chest, not wanting any of the men to see her in this delicate, yet beautiful state. Her features were for his pleasure; his and _his alone_.

Faith moaned in his arms, a sound that sent his pulse (or lack thereof) skyrocketing and caused a tightening in his loins. It was a sound of pure unadulterated sex, and it was all his. She shifted slightly, causing her lithe frame to snuggle deeper into his embrace, an act that made his demon purr in delight. His mate was seeking his protection, albeit unconsciously, but still she was showing small signs of accepting their bond. Now all that was needed was the last step and everything would be just fine. Though what Angel knew of bonds wasn't much, he could still research on it. Besides, he could always trash Wolfram and Hart if he couldn't dig up anything from the old books.

"Angel, what's going on? We heard Cordy scream from the front door and assumed the worst." Wesley said as he, Gunn and Fred rounded the corner. He took in Angel's disheveled appearance and the limp body in his arms and started forward, assuming the worst case scenario.

"Yo, Angel man, just drop the lady there in your arms and back off. We've gotta check if she's still alive." Gunn said, stepping in front of Fred when Angel hissed dangerously at them.

Angel narrowed his eyes at his friends and employees. "Back off." he said in a dangerously low voice. When they didn't comply with his wishes he crouched a bit lower, feeling the tell-tale sensations of vamping out coming over him.

Suddenly, a small hand placed itself over his left cheek, stopping him just as he was about to vamp out. "It's okay, Angel. They don't mean anything by it. Let's just go." Faith said weakly, her head lolling to a side, letting the other occupants of the hotel catch a glimpse of the woman in Angel's arms.

"Faith?" Wesley said, stunned to see his former charge in Angel's arms. "Aren't you supposed to still be in prison? How did you get out?" he asked.

"Yeah. That's a question that I wanted to ask her too, I was just sidetracked." Cordy chimed up from behind Angel and Faith.

Faith winced internally, not liking the tone the questions were asked. It felt just like how her parents had treated her whenever she was "out" for long periods of time. They never knew the truth of course, until she had come and rescued her. This of course didn't go unnoticed by Angel, whose eyes turned a threatening shade of black. He growled again, louder this time, a sound that startled everyone in the room. Well, except Faith.

"Back off." he said coldly, sweeping past his friends as they gave him a wide berth. "Do not disturb us. There are some..._things_... that Faith and I need to _discuss_. Unless the world is gonna end, stay _far away_ from my room as possible. Especially you, Wesley, and you too Gunn." Angel said, turning to give them a last cool look before closing the door to his room and bolting it shut.

He then proceeded to place Faith on his bed. With a gentleness belied by his reputation, he softly brushed her hair out of her face, gazing at her flushed face with a tender ook that he did not know he even had. The feelings that he was experiencing were far, far more intense than those that he experienced with either Buffy or Darla. These far surpassed that. Wait, flushed?

Angel stared at the features of his mate, most of which were being overtaken by an unnatural blush. He could feel the heat literally emanating off her. Instinctively, he knew that it was the second phase of the claim kicking into motion. He was surprised and pleasantly pleased. Of what he had ever heard of claims, the claimed one usually initiated the second phase during the initial phase. He had never heard of anyone who had lasted this long without succumbing to the power of the claim. They usually kick-started the claim right in the middle of the blood drinking.

Angel wanted to take things slowly, letting Faith get used to the sensations of being claimed, but it seemed that she and his demon had other ideas. As he bent over her to get a better look at her face, her eyes snapped open and she stared at Angel for a full second before reaching up and tearing the remains of his poor shirt off of his back. This was an action that Angel's demon reciprocated, an action that Angel himself greatly approved of.

Taking both of Faith's hands in his, he held them above her head, using his size advantage to pin the petite woman to the bed. Then, slowly, languorously, he trailed a hand down her cheeks, then down the silky softness of her neck, before stopping just shy of the top of her breasts. By now, her breathing had intensified, her breaths coming in short sharp puffs from her rosy lips. A sweet smell seemed to steal around the room, a smell that Angel was quite familiar with. However, coming from her, it was infinitely sweeter.

"You want me, don't you?" he asked in a sexily low voice, studying Faith's face as it flamed and she tried to hide her cheeks. However, he would have nothing of that.

"I know that you want me." he said, dangerously close to her ear. "Say it. Say that you want me." he purred into her earlobe, taking a long lick of said earlobe, making goose flesh appear all over her body.

Faith couldn't say a thing. It was not like she was inexperienced, she had enough knowledge of the act to fill an entire textbook, but with Angel, it seemed as if she was a virgin once again. She couldn't help herself, it was as if there was some undercurrent adding to her already prevalent need for the man, making it even harder to resist him. It seemed to be making her even more pliable to his every need, making her want him even more. It was as if she was some moth drawn to a flame, with nothing there to stop her self-destruction. She blushed even more as she felt even more of her arousal trickling down her thighs. She clamped her thighs together in bashfulness.

"Come on, I really know that you want me. I just want to hear you say it." Angel said, hovering over her body. "Say it!" he commanded this time, a hand cupping her there. Faith squeaked, a sound she never envisioned herself making. He...he..oh my god...

"Yes...I want you...." she said breathlessly, her eyes nearly rolling into the back of her head when Angel applied a bit more pleasure on her womanhood. "Oh...god..." she moaned, throwing her head back.

Angel grinned, triumphant. His ego properly stoked, he proceeded to release her hands as he busied himself with taking her clothes off. First went her tank top, then her jeans came next, before she was divested of her underthings. Finally, she was left in all her naked glory and he couldn't get enough of her. He watched in utter fascination as her chest rose and fell with each breath that she took, her breasts rising and falling together with it, her dark pink nipples hardening under his gaze.

Faith too was watching her love through half-lidded eyes. She felt lethargic yet energized at the same time, unable to do much but to stare at her lover and master. She memorized the planes of his body, locking it all into memory as Angel lowered his body fully over hers. He hovered over her protectively, even in the act of lovemaking his protective streak still there. She gasped when he lowered his head over her breast, taking one into his mouth. His other hand went wasn't idle either, taking her other breast in his hands and kneading it into the palms of his hands. He grinned around her breast when she gave a moan of utter abandonment.

"That's the spirit, baby. Cry for me."he said breathlessly, moving lower on her body. Faith's hands gripped the satin black bedsheets helplessly, her only coherent thought words being "Oh god..oh god..." over and over again. When Angel's talented fingers reached the apex of her thighs, she nearly combusted o the bed.

Angel chuckled. "A bit impatient, are we, babe?" he said as Faith reached up to cup his clothed butt and bring it crashing to her exposed sex. She ground against it, eliciting a moan from herself and an animalistic groan from Angel.

"Babe, you'll be the death of me." he growled into her ear.

"Clothes...too much...Off.. now..." Faith answered just as breathlessly, straining to rip his pants off of him. She succeeded in unbuckling his pants and undoing the zipper, before the claim took over the both of them.

What followed next was a ritual dance as old as time itself as both individuals battled for dominion over each other. The pants went flying, predictably, and the foreplay lasted for a long, _long_ time as Angel played Faith's body like a well tuned harp. Her body responded with the most brutal honesty, her cries of satisfaction echoing around the chamber long before they even joined as one.

Faith couldn't think. All she could do was feel, and ride along the tidal wave of emotions that were sweeping her along to an even higher existence. She barely registered the fact that Angel had placed a pillow under her butt, tilting her pelvis at a higher angle. She only caught his last words before they truly became one.

"Are you ready, babe?" Angel asked, hesitation in his voice. Faith gave a low moan, a sound that snapped the final thread of sanity that held him on this plane of existence. He surged forward, finally making her his.

The feelings that both got with the fruition of their union were exquisite. To Angel, it was like she was made for him; her every curve, her every moan, her very breath itself. Being inside of her was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. She fit him like a glove, her walls milking him for all it was worth. For Faith, it was like a supernova happened inside of her. She could only respond on the most primal level, moaning and moving along with him

His movements inside of her sent her crashing over the edge countless times. Her entire body shook with tremors, a by-product of their lovemaking. His thrusts became more powerful, deeper even as he strained to join her in bliss.

"Angel...I...I..." Faith gasped, her fingers digging futilely into his back as he thrust himself furiously into her, an untamed stallion let loose in the pastures.

"Wait for me, babe." Angel growled, his inner demon crying out for blood once again, her blood in fact , to complete the cycle.

"Faith, can I..." he trailed off, not knowing how to broach the subject. His demon demanded that he take the sustenance that he needed, he however insisted on giving his love a choice.

"What...is...it..." she gasped out, turning his face towards hers. Seeing the indecision and unspoken question in his eyes, she understood immediately.

"I...give you...my...blood...willingly..."she rasped out, unable to say more over his furious pace inside of her.

That was all the indication that he needed. His fangs slid out and he sank them into the creamy skin that met her neck and her chest, near her collarbone, right over her heart. Upon the first taste of her life-giving blood on his tongue, his demon rejoiced and claimed even more dominion over the warm brunette in his arms.

Angel drinking from Faith triggered the most intense orgasm that Faith had ever experienced. She cried out, both in joy and in ecstasy, as he partook of her in their most intimate of moments. She could feel something stirring deep within her, something primal that she knew had to be done. It had to be done now, just before Angel truly marked her as his. She stretched upwards and bit into the flesh above his shoulder, hard enough to draw blood. Immediately, she took a sip.

When Faith bit into his shoulder, Angel instinctively knew what she was going to do. He didn't stop her, in fact his demon rejoiced in the fact that she was exercising her right as his mate to mark him as well. Her first sip however finally sent him over the edge, as he shot his seed into her warm womb. To Faith, the combined effect of Angel shooting his seed into her and her drinking from him sent her into another massive orgasm, even stronger than the ones before.

"Angel!!!" she screamed his name as she was sent spiraling towards the black abyss, fatigue finally overcoming her. The last coherent image that she had in her mind was that of Angel breathing harshly, panting protectively still over her body.

Angel rested his head in the crook of his love's neck, panting harshly as he fought to regain his unneeded breath. The sensations he had felt were mind blowing to say the least. He hovered protectively over her, knowing that the next couple pf weeks would be the determining phase of the claim. He had to constantly renew his claim over her, and establish his dominion over her to ensure that she survived the claiming. Without it, she could probably spiral into madness, just like what had happened to Drusilla. That was one mistake he would never make again, as contrary to everyone's belief, she hadn't been driven mad by his murder of her family. No, she had gone mad due to an unchecked claim; one he did not deign to have at that time. He was truly sorry of what he did to her, but one couldn't turn back the hands of time.

Now, he would take his rest, for he knew that he would need it for the couple of weeks to come. Laying down atop her body, another sign of protectiveness, he slipped into light slumber, always alert for the changes in their surroundings. Any hint of danger would not be tolerated.

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Author's Note: Not my best chapter to date. I'm not exactly happy with the love scene between my main characters, seeing as I don't have much to draw on. Any comments and reviews would be appreciated. I'll try to update soon.

Ciao!!


	4. Chapter Three Fight!

Chapter Three – Fight!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. All of these belong to Joss Whedon and his crew. Thanks for letting me play with them though.

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_Last time on "Faith's Champion"..._

Angel rested his head in the crook of his love's neck, panting harshly as he fought to regain his unneeded breath. The sensations he had felt were mind blowing to say the least. He hovered protectively over her, knowing that the next couple of weeks would be the determining phase of the claim. He had to constantly renew his claim over her, and establish his dominion over her to ensure that she survived the claiming. Without it, she could probably spiral into madness, just like what had happened to Drusilla. That was one mistake he would never make again, as contrary to everyone's belief, she hadn't been driven mad by his murder of her family. No, she had gone mad due to an unchecked claim; one he did not deign to have at that time. He was truly sorry of what he did to her, but one couldn't turn back the hands of time.

Now, he would take his rest, for he knew that he would need it for the couple of weeks to come. Laying down atop her body, another sign of protectiveness, he slipped into light slumber, always alert for the changes in their surroundings. Any hint of danger would not be tolerated.

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It was dark the next time that Faith opened her eyes. Her entire body ached with delicious tiredness, muscles in places where she didn't even realize they existed groaning in protest as she stretched languidly on the bed. She tried to get up, but the muscles in her lower back and her thighs protested the most. Especially her inner thighs. The thought of said muscles made her blush, a rosy red colour slowly creeping over her features. She hardly dared to remember what she did with those muscles.

She was all alone on Angel's bed, _their bed_, she thought to herself. Or so she thought. She didn't realize that there was someone else in the room until she felt the dipping of the bed as it accommodated it's new occupant, a moment before she felt the slightly cool hand that reached around front of her to place itself possessively around her waist and pull her to him.

_Him_. She knew who the owner of the hand was. It was a scent that she couldn't forget until the end of time itself, a scent that kept her sane and her hopes up all through her penance to society, a scent that was ingrained into her memory forever. Next thing she knew, she was face down over a hard body as the owner of said hands had flipped her over on to his chest, the thin silk sheet (black by the way, so like the owner, dark and broody) the only thing separating their bodies. She had expected his body to be cold, instead, the slightly cool, if not sometimes lukewarm flesh was what had greeted her. She had been surprised at first, but that had quickly given way to awe.

It was awing, to say the least, that this man – she would never refer to him as vampire as he was far more than that – had chosen her over all others. In a sense she knew what it was that she had surrendered to him; after all, her Watcher, her _real_ Watcher had told her the _truth_, everything that she needed to know of her _heritage_ and her _legacy_;the true Slayer. That he had chosen her over another who had once been his hearts greatest desire to share this intimacy and privilege was mind boggling and humbling, to name a few of her feelings. But it was her love for him, magnified ten-fold, that drove her to accept her fate. Well, at least that and the strange stirring in her soul that told her that she had to do it, to accept him fully and surrender what was left of her to him. It was the only way. Of what, she knew not.

"Hi beautiful." Angel breathed as he stared into the dark brown, albeit slightly unfocused eyes of his beloved. He was mesmerized by the creature before him; soft and pliant under him when she was in his arms, yet still with an inner fire that was especially apparent when she was fighting beside him. He remembered that fire all too well. It caused a stirring in his loins, a fact that went unnoticed for the moment.

"Hey yourself." Faith said softly, broken out of her inner musings. She stared at the face of her personal angel, taking in his current expression before she met her eyes to his. "How long exactly have I been out, at least since the last time I was awake?" she asked, placing a light kiss on his lips after the query.

"Well...not long." came the vague reply. Faith narrowed her eyes in slight suspicion. Something fishy was going on, for she somehow knew that Angel wouldn't lie to her unless it was very important.

"What's going on?" she asked, her right brow raising to show that she deemed the answer to said question very crucial. Angel shifted slightly on the bed, one out of uneasiness, the other out of a more _personal_ uneasiness. Couldn't blame a guy for getting turned on by his beloved.

"I'm waiting." she said, pinching his chest lightly to get his attention back on her.

"What is the last thing you remember? Do you know when was the last time you were fully awake?" he asked her instead. This gave her pause; she cocked her head to a side to contemplate her answer. She answered uncertainly.

"Uhm...us...doing the horizontal tango...on this bed...with me on top?" Faith said, earning a light pinch on the backside for her cheeky answer. "Seriously, I only recall waking up to answer natures call and take a bite of a sandwich before you carted me off to bed again." she said, looking him in the eye. "Why? Is it very important?"

"Yeah, it is. That was two days ago." he dropped the bombshell. He winced internally, anticipating her explosion. He wasn't disappointed.

"What?! Two days ago?!" Faith yelped, more out of surprise than anger. Seeing the hastily concealed look of hurt in his eyes, she quickly reassured her beloved. "Oh no no no, it's not that I'm angry or anything, it's just that I'm surprised, that's all."

"You're not angry? Or worried about why you were knocked out for that long without your Slayer healing powers kicking in?" he asked incredulously.

"Nope." she said, popping the p as she snapped her plump lips close. "I know there's gotta be a reason for that, and I know that that is what you're worried about."

"How are you so sure of yourself?" he asked, eyes narrowing in contemplation as his inner demon was wondering what exactly did she know. The implications of what she knew were astounding, as far as he was concerned. In fact, she could have been stringing him along, anticipating this particular result, for to become a vampire's mate _had_ its perks. The older the vampire, the more the perks, and possibly, the longer the mate could live. He growled low in his throat, feeling angry at the possibility of being cheated by his own mate.

Faith winced, feeling the threatening growl of her mate. Suddenly, she was flipped around, her back making contact with the cool surface of the headboard of Angel's bed. Angel pressed her into the soft yet scratchy surface, his body hovering mere inches above hers as he hissed his displeasure and suspicion into her ear.

"Did you know what would happen should I claim you?" he asked in a soft voice. Faith quivered under his words, one out of hearing the underlying threat in his words, the other out of the effort to keep her own emotions under control. It hurt, very much, that he would mistrust her so.

"No." she whispered finally. She couldn't bring herself to raise her voice any louder, as she would probably break down due to the effort, and also Angel would probably see that as rebellion to his power over her. She might end up punished for it, or worse, he could rescind his claim, so early into the relationship as they were that _that_ was possible. Faith knew that she couldn't stand that, she would most likely go crazy just like Drusilla. But the heartache of losing him would be worse, she probably wouldn't stand a day without him, and end up committing suicide just to make the pain go away. Even thinking of it now made her bleed internally.

"How long have you known what was going on?" he said in a deceptively calm voice. "Answer me!" he commanded, tugging on the tiny heart-string that connected a vampire with his mate. It was uncommon knowledge of the existence of this particular trait of a vampire mate claim, one that Angel himself had accidentally learned of when he drank the blood of an old monk learned in the ways of folklore and myths, which were mostly true anyway. He used this knowledge now, utilizing it to bring his mate to heel.

Faith winced again, this time in actual pain as she felt something tugging mercilessly at her heart. It gave her the feeling of betrayal of her master, an intense emotion that made her feel as if she had done something really wrong, like she had betrayed his trust in her. She couldn't stop the lone tear that rolled down her cheek as she answered, "I..only realised...what...might have happened...when...I felt...a presence...in my...heart." She gasped, seeming to choke on something, before continuing. "I knew...for sure...when...I couldn't seem...to deny...anything...you wanted..." She couldn't say anything else, as the feelings of betrayal were literally choking her life away. Though she did not commit the deed, even the suggestion that she had done so could trigger the power of the claim to take away the life of the mate who had committed the heinous act, be it suggestion or reality.

Angel could feel that his mate was telling the truth, he could almost see it in her eyes. He could also feel her life slowly slipping away, and his protective instinct immediately sprung into play. He growled, immediately taking her in his arms and willing the power of the claim to release its choke-hold on his mate. She did not betray him, she was still true to him in all ways. Inside, he was relieved that their bond was still young; if it were any older, she would have been killed almost instantaneously with the barest hint of infidelity.

As her breathing slowly went back to normal, Angel cradled her protectively in his arms. He sighed, dreading the things that he was about to tell her. She wouldn't take this lightly, she probably would flip and attempt to kill him at this new twist in the plot. However, first things first. He needed to know how much did Faith know about her origins, about who she was inherently. Whether she knew the real deal about Slayers. It wasn't exactly public knowledge where did Slayers come from, after all, which woman in her right mind would like to know that she was descended from _them_?

"Are you okay, baby?" Angel asked as he lifted Faith's face from the crook of his neck where she had been resting it. He softly brushed her damp hair from her eyes, tucking it behind her ears with a gentleness he had yet to acknowledge or even comprehend deeply. He knew that he loved her, but was it as deep as he hoped it to be? He shook those thoughts from his head.

"Yeah, five by five." Faith joked, ignoring the lingering pain and hurt that she still felt deep in her soul. Seeds of doubt were planted right next to the uncertainties that she had had ever since comprehending her feelings for Angel, which did nothing to help her situation with her lover."What exactly was that?" she queried, quashing her errant feelings for the time being and focusing on the problems at hand.

Angel sighed. "That was the power of the claim, establishing discipline over the hint of infidelity." he replied, inwardly bracing for the deluge of questions that were sure to follow. If nothing more, he was sure of one thing – Faith never took things laying down, she was a fighter through and through and she would want to know what was going on.

He was however, disappointed. There was no outburst from Faith, just the brief flash of pain that he felt over their bond before it was gone. Their bond wasn't strong enough yet for him to actually gage her feelings over long distances, whats more to actually know what she was thinking at that very moment. He had to content himself with brief glimpses into her inner world. What replaced it was an outward calm that showed that she was deeply in control of her emotions. He didn't know what it was that she was really thinking. For all he knew, she was cursing him to Hell and back right now.

_So that was it._ Faith thought to herself, remembering something that her Watcher had mentioned briefly when they came to the topic of claims. They hadn't dwelled too much on that subject as her Watcher had been intent on teaching her the way of their people and of her heritage. Claims were just a minor detail in the scale of things. Looking at the big picture, she would be as unlikely to need to know anything about claims as much as Buffy did. After all, she was the one involved with two vampires, both Spike and Angel at nearly the same time. She was more likely to be claimed by either vampire at any time of day, which would probably spark an all out vampire dominance war between the two Master vamps; Angel cause he was so in love with Buffy, Spike cause he didn't share.

_Well, Angel wasn't in love with Buffy anymore._ She mused internally. Or was he still in love with her, just briefly distracted by the new claim he had established over her? Faith wasn't sure what the truth was, but it wouldn't do to dwell on these dark thoughts now. She had more pressing matters to take care of now, stuff that definitely did not take care of themselves just like that.

"Claims?" she asked instead, turning questioning eyes to Angel. "I've heard about them briefly, but I don't really know much about them." she said, gently sitting up straighter so as not to antagonize the protesting muscles of her body. She was already weary enough, didn't need to add anymore to the growing list of her pains. Not like it wasn't anything new to the dark Slayer – she had been through worse than this. These were like an ant bite compared to what she had gone through before.

She shook these dark thoughts away. She was getting way off topic here. "What do you mean by claims? What exactly happened before we...well...did the horizontal tango?" she quipped, drawing another pinch on the butt from Angel, who this time was aware that she was joking, just enough for him to give a mock growl and pretend to bite her.

"Remember our fight?" he looked to Faith before continuing at her hesitant nod. "Well, remember at the end where I told you to yield to me?" he asked. "I believe that by initiating the fight and the consequent words that I said, I had accidentally claimed you." Faith's face darkened.

"You what?! Accidentally claimed me? Accidentally?!" she screeched, outrage evident in her voice. "Angel, vampires don't accidentally go claiming people, you can't accidentally claim someone!" she ranted, outraged at the idea that what they shared was just that, an accident. She carefully masked the hurt she felt, a thing she did almost automatically as she had learned earlier on that to show your emotion meant a weakness that others could exploit.

"Uhm... I did do that." he supplied weakly.

"What?" she asked, non-plussed by his statement.

"I have accidentally claimed someone before." he said in a resigned voice. "Remember Drusilla?" he asked. Faith nodded hesitantly. "Well, she was the one that I had claimed before."

"Drusilla, as in doll-talking-blood-sucking-Miss-Edith-talks-to-me Drusilla?" Faith said, horrified. "That was a claim? But what happened?"

"I had claimed her, or to be precise it was the beginning of a claim. However, I didn't go through with it, and that's how you got the Dru of today." Angel sighed. "If a claim is not finished, the claimed one usually goes mad, little by little, until finally they either commit suicide due to the unchecked claim or they die of a broken heart."

"What exactly happened with Drusilla? You claimed her, but then..." Faith trailed off.

"I claimed her, but I didn't care to check up on her after that. I was still quite enamoured with Darla then. As such, Dru herself made a companion to fill the void in her that yearned for my attention. She went mad, yes, but she didn't have the luxury of death. Her vampire survival instincts were too strong to let her just commit suicide." he explained.

"You mean she made Spike just because she couldn't... Oh Angel, poor Dru. And she couldn't even die... Oh god." she breathed. She couldn't help but pity the mad vampire Seer. They both knew the agony of unrequited love but at least Angel continually checked his claim over her. She didn't have that, not even a bit of it, and she knew that Angelus had abused this hold that he had over Drusilla. _The poor, poor woman._ She thought as she wrapped her arms shakily around herself.

"How exactly do you 'check' on the claim?" Faith asked after a moment of silence. At this, Angel gave roguish grin that set her heart racing In her chest.

"The one and only way to 'check' on a claim is through sex." Angel said, grinning at his love's flushing face. "And when I say sex, I mean continuous, unrelenting, wild sex mixed with some blood drinking." he said near her ear, purposely blowing down the column of her neck. "It is done to ensure that the bond between the claimer and the claimed are strengthened, so that the claimer can protect the claimed one in the event of danger, one which usually follows bonded couples."

Faith couldn't help but shiver at Angel's words. The way he said it implied that there was much that she had to learn and know about claims. The look in his eyes when he said 'sex' was almost enough to get her truly undone. It was a look she recognized very well, after all she had been the recipient of many such glances for however long it was that they were cooped up in Angel's chamber. It always signaled the start of Angel's seduction, and she always ended up fainting of exhaustion after the bouts of 'bedroom exercise' with the man. This time she really shivered in memory of just what they had done together.

"How long..." she cleared her throat at the sudden huskiness of her voice. "...how long exactly has it been since I was fully lucid and in charge of my emotions and thoughts?" she whispered, dreading yet anticipating the answer.

"Remember what I said about the continuous sex... Two weeks." he finally relented when Faith raised her eyebrows threateningly at his continued attempts at evading her question.

"Oh my god." she whispered, awed and shocked at the same time. _That_ long just to ensure that their bond was stable?

"I don't think that he can help you there." he said as he slid his body over hers, covering her completely. "But I can." he breathed just moments before he claimed her lips and silenced her questions for now as he exercised his right to keep their bond strong. Faith reciprocated with a muffled whimper, her eyes fluttering shut of their own volition as she wrapped her arms around his neck and surrendered herself once again to her lover and master.

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It had been two weeks since anyone from Angel Inc. had seen the dark Slayer. The last time was when Angel had held her in his arms and warned them from going near his rooms. Or more specifically, warned Wesley and Gunn from doing so. However, that didn't stop Cordy or Fred. Cordy especially was fuming and wanted to know what exactly was going on. When she went near the door, she couldn't hear anything much at first. Then after a while, she recognized the heavy breathing of...someone. Whoever that someone was, she still had no idea.

She had sat down to wait for Angel to come out and give an explanation of what exactly was going on, but it was a dull, long wait. She was finally getting impatient to the point where she almost barged into Angel's rooms when she heard the shriek of a woman's voice proceeded by the animalistic shout of a man's. She stood up to investigate, but a sudden, powerful wave of magic pushed her backwards to the wall again. You didn't need to be a rocket scientist to understand what exactly happened in the room. The shouts were a testament to what had happened in said room. She turned towards the stairs, not interested in finding out what had transpired between the occupants of the room. She was too hurt, heartbroken by the fact that the man she had had a major crush on decided to be with someone else, a woman who had tried to kill them some time ago no less.

She headed downstairs, unmindful of the questions directed her way. She didn't expect to see Angel till his 'business' was finished, whenever that was. The questions from Wesley were promptly ignored as Cordy lost herself in a long bout of self pity, moving on autopilot as she continued with her previously forgotten job of sorting through their company's mail. Then when her job was done, she ordered some food and proceeded to seclude herself in her room, with Wesley hot on her heels, hounding her for answers. This cycle continued for three days nonstop until on the fourth day, the door of their erstwhile leader opened and the man himself made an appearance.

Lorne was in for a visit that day, having swung by before opening Caritas for the night. They had not expected Angel's appearance any time soon, so they were understandably surprised to see him calmly waltzing into the reception area of the office and head straight for the small fridge that he kept in there. He then proceeded to take out a bag of blood and pour it into a mug before going on to take out a small wrapped sandwich that was kept in there and place it on a plate. He didn't even acknowledge the fact that there was anyone else there until Lorne stopped him with a well placed sentence.

"Whew, that must have been some night that you've been through, Angelcakes, cause the smell is divine." Lorne said, stopping Angel in his tracks. "Also, the marks are kind of obvious." he added, pointing to the raw nail marks that marred his back, visible due to the fact that he wasn't wearing any shirt, and that he was wearing a pair of black flannel pants that rode low on his waist.

Angel's eyebrows raised quizzically. He hadn't expected to see Lorne in the Hyperion, but his presence was always welcome. Surprisingly, he hadn't felt the need to protect his mate from Lorne. Probably because he was an anagogic demon and all. Lorne didn't bring out all the demon goodness in him, after all. That was strange.

He gave Gunn and Wesley curt nods when he passed them by on the way out of the office, as both men and also Fred were gathered round the reception area, tucking into some boxes of Chinese. Well, Fred was, with a tomato red face he might add. The former were staring at him in some suspicion and disbelief, of what, Angel didn't want to know. He had a lot on his plate as it was. He grimaced in Lorne's direction, the latter whom gave an understanding nod (seeing as he could sense some surface emotions as it is).

"Tough huh?" he said, giving Angel a bright smile. "Keep it up, it'll be okay in the end." he reassured the vampire, whom just nodded over his mouthful, sorry, mugful of blood. The room was silent until Angel was out of earshot (which is very far by the way), before Wesley asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

"What is going on, Lorne? You seem to know more than any of us do at the moment." he turned slightly accusing eyes to the demon lounging languidly on a sofa set in the lobby. Said demon just gave a noncommittal shrug, not wanting to divulge anything before Angel said the get go.

"C'mon man, you could just give us a hint." Gunn pleaded, curious about what exactly happened to his boss and also friend.

"I believe that that is classified information. It does not concern anyone in this room." Lorne said primly, eliciting a nervous giggle from Fred for his antics. "Besides, it is for me to know and you to find out." he added.

"But Lorne..." Fred pleaded, her voice dying out as she spotted Cordy walking into the lobby. Cordy hadn't been herself these past few days as she seemed to retreat into her shell. It was quite uncharacteristic of the usually bubbly brunette, and it was worrying her friends.

"Hi Cordy, haven't seen you in my bar lately. You said that you would swing by a couple of days ago." the anagogic demon said cheerfully, oblivious to the cold atmosphere that suddenly descended onto the room. "So, are you coming over anytime soon?" he asked hopefully.

"No." came the monosyllable reply.

"Okay then, just come on over when you guys are ready." the demon said as he straightened his immaculate yet odd neon green suit and red tie. His trademark clothes shone with a light of its own.

"Bye Lorne." Fred offered timidly, waving from behind the carton of food, Indian, by the smell of it.

"Bye Freddie-poo." Lorne blew a flying kiss at said lady, air kissing the vicinity around Cordelia. "Bye Cordy, bye guys. See you in my pub, Monday." he ordered.

"It's a date." Cordy answered in monotone, earning worried glances from the rest of the gang. Said demon then swept out majestically, as if this were his home, which it almost was.

"Weird, huh?" Gunn said in the awkward silence that followed.

"You mean Lorne? Him being a good demon and all?" Wesley asked the huge black man, whom shrugged. "No it isn't, it's just Lorne being Lorne."

"You mean, a demon ordering us around is normal?" Fred asked right after her boyfriend, earning her a grateful glance from said guy. He was never one for words.

"He's not ordering us around. That's just how he is." Wesley valiantly defended the demon that he had come to like over time.

"Oh." came the soft reply. "So, how are you Cordy? Are you feeling any better?" Fred asked, all too knowing of what had happened to the other woman in Angel Inc. She may be a genius, but she wasn't blind to what Cordelia felt for Angel. Only men were that oblivious. But sadly, Angel didn't feel the same way for her.

"I'm fine." said woman answered with a bit more emotion this time.

"What happened the other day? You totally zoned us out." Gunn asked a bit tactlessly. He earned a swift kick on the shins from his girlfriend. "What? What did I say?"

"Ugh! Men are so clueless!" she ranted as she stormed out of the room, her boyfriend following after her, apologizing profusely. "Sorry baby, I'm just curious is all...Freddie, don't leave me..." he whined as their voices faded away.

"Are you ready to talk about it?" Wesley asked in the ensuing silence. By the stiff way she held her shoulders and the rigid stance of her body, he knew that she wasn't ready yet. He wisely backed off.

"Hey, when you want to talk about it, we'll be here for you. Any time." he said resolutely, missing the slight wince in her features.

The whole cycle repeated itself over the course of the two weeks that Angel kept himself secluded in his room. He only ever came out to grab a drink of blood, or replenish his stores of the item, or to grab a bite for the person sequestered inside with him. And over that time, Cordy had come to resent Faith, her initial heartbreak and hurt feelings turning to more malicious thoughts and her innate fear of loosing Angel to an outsider making her resent and even downright loathe the dark Slayer.

When Angel finally emerged from his room on the night marking the end of the second week he spent locked inside, he wasn't alone. That same day, Cordy had worked up her own reserve to give Angel a piece of her mind. He wasn't being fair to them, his friends and coworkers, by harbouring a known criminal whom in the past had nearly killed at least half of the group, Angel himself included. Fred had tried to dissuade the other woman of this notion, firstly because she hadn't gotten the whole story yet, and secondly because she could stand from an observers point of view and give objective opinions, not clouded by hate or jealousy or guilt.

Everything was coming to head at the Hyperion tonight, and nothing that Fred could do would stop it.

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Author's Note: Hey you guys, I'm really really sorry that I couldn't update sooner. I got stuck with writer's block after the exams and couldn't get back into the thick of things to continue the story. So, this is another filler chapter, hope that you all like it.


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